Gold is the best money, because for centuries, as a result of countless individual choices, it has evolved as such. It was not imposed on the market by force, but was cultivated in the soil of the market itself. It grew naturally in the open air of voluntary exchange, not in a cloistered greenhouse of government fiat. When governments said they supported a strong dollar, it meant that they would not attempt to undermine the gold backing that the market chose. Today, those words have little meaning.
Though the old classical gold standard was not perfect, it was, in Rothbard’s words "by far the best monetary order the world has ever known, an order which worked, which kept business cycles from getting out of hand, and which enabled the development of free international trade, exchange and investment."
There is not much more one can ask from a currency.
Christopher Mayer is a commercial lender for Provident Bank near Washington, DC
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